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artist · john beltran
release · caboclo
year · 2001
genre · house
label · exceptional
catalogue · exec 015
website · www.exceptionalrecords.co.uk
date · 26-jun-2004
quality · 161kbps/44,1khz
source · vinyl
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a1 caboclo (original mix) 6:58
a2 caboclo (beltrans beach mix) 5:21
b1 caboclo (get f__ked mix) 6:18
playtime · 00h 18m 37s
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taken from the album americano by john beltran, featuring superb
tech house reworking from london's get fucked.
us musician/producer john beltran is already well respected for
his previous releases which include " ten days of blue" and "
earth and nightfall" beltran numbers among his admirers gilles
peterson, craig richards, nick warren, mixmaster morris and andrea
parker, while patrick forge listed beltran's lp the cry second in
his chart of all time favourites. the music on the sky ep, john's
first release on exceptional occupies the space that beltran has
become known for, the predawn state between the dancefloor and the
duvet.
following the success of the sky ep we got together for an album
project. the first single from the album "caboclo " is driven by a
beautiful sax riff set against a breezy backdrop of delicate funky
instrumentation and as always with beltran, you can hear many
different stylistic influences where jazz meshes with latin
elements sitting along more overtly electronic sounds.
the nme once reckoned there was a clock inside john beltran's head
stuck fast at 5 am. it was because his music appeared to inhabit a
pre-dawn state between the dancefloor the soon to be sex or
dream-soaked duvet, a special area where soft rhythm and ticking
sensuality were neatly intertwined. and they're not alone in
rating this us producer. tracks from his first three albums
regularly turn up in freestyle and chill out sets from djs like
mixmaster morris, gilles peterson and andrea parker whilst patrick
forge listed beltran's "the cry" (recorded under beltran's placid
angles pseudonym) as second in his chart of all time classic
albums.
still based in his hometown of lansing, michigan (famous only for
producing the verve pipe and magic johnson) beltran explains that
he leads a quiet but athletic life and makes music influenced by
his attitudes towards life and listening habits plus trace
elements of dancefloor experiences both past and present. so far
he's produced four lps and earned himself rave reviews and a cult
following amongst those ready to look for something beyond the
dance within so-called ædance music cultureÆ, although the beats,
breaks and bass of the floor usually bubble up through his tracks
no matter how reflective they might initially seem.
brought up on classical, jazz and latin at home (early sonic
memories include john coltrane, tito puente and bach) decisive
elements in his musical make up include being given a cheap
synthesizer as a teenager and visiting detroit club the music
institute where the resident dj was derrick may. " i guess that's
where electronic music really won me over" recalls beltran " where
i developed my love for what people began to call techno music.
and it was weird, there was a true sense of underground, you'd go
to small clubs in alleyways and strange places, but the vibe was
so powerful it's something i've never seen or gotten since "
and of course derrick may and detroit's reading of techno was
something very different from the european versions of the music
that followed it. their techno was produced by a bunch of drug
free cats buzzing on kraftwerk, chicago house, electro and, at
times, an almost mystical vision of their place in the history of
american black music. this was an intense music scene and
beltran's first record " aquatic" released under the name open
house with its liquid chords, dolphin samples and deep house
bassline was quickly snapped up by may cohort and fellow detroit
talent carl craig. " i played it to him on the phone" smiles
beltran " and carl said 'i want it'. that was my first release ".
a couple of meaningless jobs and a growing collection of equipment
pushed him towards writing his first lp earth and nightfall
released on r & s in 1995. " i dropped out for a while " he
recalls, " i stopped writing music for a time. i got a job with
consumers power educating people about energy conservation. my
record collection is really diverse- it covers everything from
solo piano stuff like george winston, latin and salsa, even new
age- so when i started writing again i guess all those influences
came through".
didn't they. in many ways earth and nightfall was a landmark album
with its mixture of acoustic (guitar and human voice) and
electronic sources, basslines from chicago house, detroits
innovative beat sense, distinctive samples ( like looping and
mutating bach's orchestral suite no 2) and ambitious song-eyele or
fugue like structure. and all of these elements were subjugated to
projecting a seemingly virtual 5 am, reflective or chill out state
which became beltrans keynote theme; all of his music is a
dusk-dawn blues soundtrack for in between times, black coffee, red
wine and cigarettes and the thread of urban romanticism runs
through his music.
"that kind of thing is my life " reflects john " i like simple
things, simple pleasures. i don't need a lot of money. i'm not
looking to have that mansion. i like sunsets, the morning light,
chilling at my window in my bedroom or going out with my friends,
drinking some wine and it really doesn't get any better than that
for me, my music really is my life."
his second and third lps, ten days of blue and the cry were
released on peacefrog (sometime home to luke slater and fretless
azms max brennan) marked a rhythmic progression from his debut
album as beltran increased the breakbeat pressure and introduced
spikier percussives. but these albums also saw him finessing his
distinctive use of keyboard sound. if you listen to ten days of
blue it's sometimes impossible to know if you're hearing a harp
guitar, dulcimer or some synthesized version of these instruments.
it's a teasing experience these sounds are at once calming and
even blissful, but also sneakily alien and a touch unknown, "when
i make melodies or patches or string and chord sounds i try and
keep things as warm as possible. but i like using factory pre-set
sounds, i like to go through keyboards looking for sounds, seeing
what's there, i'm not so interested in making my own sounds maybe
because i've got music flying through my head and i like to get on
with it, look for sounds that express my feelings or emotions and
get on with it. i'm always looking for that perfect sound or patch
that will inspire something even better in me and help me rise to
another level."
there aren't many artists that admit to using let alone even
liking pre-set sounds. it's usually fashionable to generate your
own and it's to beltran's credit that he makes these pre-sets
sound unique and personal. beltran seems to have familiarized
himself with the new language of rhythm: chopping and cutting
breaks and essentially taking up the challenge of making music in
a post drum 'n bass environment.
"i always want to progress as a musician. i like trendy things and
i'm not going to lie. i love detroit but i've been getting into
all sorts of other things and i've tried to do it my way and keep
my musical language intact". not that he needs to justify himself,
"ten days of blue" witnessed beltran's dropping breaks before such
a move was fashionable and anyway arch drum 'n bass hero photek
sampled his aquatic tune for release on ltj bukem's good looking
imprint.
whatever the future may hold one thingÆs for sure. beltran will
still be out there, experimenting, unafraid to try something new,
maybe mixing it with something borrowed and something blue.
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